Category: News

It’s Christmas in July for Tennessee consumers. The Tennessee General Assembly passed several consumer laws earlier this year that provide greater protection from military impersonators, improve assistance when recovering from identity theft and prevent credit-reporting companies from charging consumers when putting security freezes in place.
Baylie Scott, with the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance, said state lawmakers prioritized consumer rights this session.
“Gov. Haslam’s administration and the General Assembly has done a really great job of enforcing the importance of consumer protection and their emphasis on that,” Scott said; “and I think that this is the last round of that. They really wanted to get this established and in stone.”
The new laws took effect July 1.
While some progress was made, consumer advocates point out that Tennessee still is one of 27 states that allows payday lending, which critics say unfairly targets the poor and working class by charging exceedingly large interest rates.
Another new law prohibits health care prescribers from soliciting their services to victims of an accident or disaster within 30 days of the incident. Scott said it’s important that consumers know their rights and ask for help when they need it.
“If anybody thinks they have been a victim of fraud or needs consumer tips or advice, they can definitely call our Consumer Affairs division, or visit tn.gov/consumer,” he said.
This summer, the TDCI also is warning against moving scams as people move in and out of Tennessee during the summer months. Potential tenants are advised to carefully review leases and see properties in person. Experts remind landlords about the importance of background and credit checks when choosing a tenant.

On Monday night, (July 16, 2018) just after 8:30pm Coffee County Sheriff’s Deputy Kevin Smith conducted a traffic stop on McArthur St for a light law violation. According to deputy’s report, upon making contact with the driver, Caleb Amara Lane age 28 of Cortner Mill Road, Normandy, Smith said could smell the odor of marijuana.
After searching the vehicle, approximately 1.5 grams of methenamine was seized along with 2 grams of marijuana, scales and a glass meth pipe.
Lane was taken to jail where warrants were served for driving on revoked/suspended license, schedule VI and II drug violations, and unlawful drug paraphernalia uses and activities.
Manchester Police also had a warrant on Lane. Investigator Jonathan Anthony charged the man with assault. According to the warrant, Lane had made threats to shoot up a female’s residence.
Lane was booked in at the Coffee County Jail under a bond of $14,000. He will appear in Coffee County General Sessions Court July 23, 2018.

DISCLAIMER: All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. The arrest records or information about an arrest that are published or reported on Thunder Radio WMSR and WMSRradio.com are not an indication of guilt or evidence that an actual crime has been committed.

The summer break from school is almost up as students return to class in two weeks. Coffee County Schools will have an abbreviated day on August 1 as students will be released at 10am. Teachers will have an administration day on August 2 and the first full day of classes will be August 3.
Manchester City Schools will have an abbreviated day on August 2, until 9 a.m., with regular classes beginning on August 3.
The first day of classes for Tullahoma City School students is August 1 with students being released at 1pm and the first full day on August 2.

Gas prices are trending lower after a small jump in prices at the pump last week. Gas prices in Tennessee are 2 cents higher than a week ago. The state average of $2.63 is 10 cents less than this year’s high, yet it remains 61 cents more than this time last year.
Pump prices rose last week after reports surfaced of seven gulf coast refineries dealing with various operational issues. Some of the issues have already been resolved, while others could take weeks.
The national average price of a gallon of regular unleaded is $2.87, which is one cent higher than a week ago.
The low price per gallon in Manchester this week is $2.52 and in Tullahoma the low price is $2.50.

A new technique called “shimming” is another way scammers can steal your bank account information – even if your card has a chip.
The Council on Aging says it can swipe your bank account number and PIN off a credit or debit card.
According to the Better Business Bureau, the thieves place a paper-thin device – called a shim – in the slot where you enter the chip side of your debit or credit card. When you insert your card, it copies and saves your information on the card-sized device.
To keep yourself safe, check your bank account often and cancel your transaction if you have any problems while sliding your card. Also, try to use bank ATMs if possible.

The lip sync battle sweeping police departments across the nation has arrived in Manchester. The city police department took on the challenge with their performance of “Time of My Life” by Bill Medley, Jennifer Warnes. The hit song from the movie Dirty Dancing.
According to the Coffee County Sheriff’s Department, they are working on their version of the lip sync challenge.
To see the Manchester City Police Department’s own, lip-sync challenge click on this link.

We have a reminder for you that early voting continues through July 28 for the August 2 general and primary elections. It will only take a few minutes and it means you will not have to stand in line on Election Day. After two days of voting (Friday and Saturday) 861 Coffee Countians had voted. There were 569 Republicans and 279 Democrats that cast their ballots. Thirteen voters cast ballots in the county general election and chose not to vote in the state primary.
Early voting hours will be Monday through Friday from 8am to 4:30pm and Saturdays from 8:30am until noon at the Election Commission office in the Coffee County Administration Plaza and in Tullahoma at the C.D. Stamps Center from 9am-4:30pm, Monday-Friday and Saturdays 9am-noon. Early voting will end on July 28th. Election Day is August 2nd. All voters who vote early or on Election Day must present a government issued photo ID.

The Food and Drug Administration is warning people who buy medicines online they could become the target of a new scam.
Criminals are posing as FDA officials and the agency believes it’s an international extortion scam. They say several dozen people have received letters that look authentic. The letters claim the federal agency has been monitoring their social media accounts.
The fake warning letters accuse people of drug law violations and threaten them with possible legal action for attempting to buy drugs online or on the phone.
What’s more frightening is that the scammers appear to have financial information and addresses for a lot of people.
The FDA says they generally send actual warning letters only to companies that manufacture drugs, not to people receiving them.

A fugitive who was added to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation’s Top 10 Most Wanted list over the weekend is now in custody after being captured in Davidson County.
William Barnard Hawk was taken into custody at the Walmart parking lot on Powell Avenue in Nashville Monday afternoon. Several law enforcement agencies provided assistance during the apprehension, including TBI, Metro Nashville Police Department and the U.S. Marshals Service Middle Tennessee Joint Fugitive Task Force.
Hawk was wanted by the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Department to face a charge of Attempted Criminal Homicide in connection to an incident that occurred in the Park City area on July 14th.